Carrot, Ginger and Orange Soup

Helmut and Paul made this Carrot, Ginger and Orange Soup in the South Arm Cooking Club for Seniors for take home purpose.

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This Carrot, Ginger and Orange Soup freezes beautifully. So, make a big batch and freezes them in single portion container for later meals when you are too busy to cook or on the run.

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 1/2 onion, chopped
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 3 medium carrots, peeled and thinly sliced or chopped with a food processor
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
  • 1 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
  • 1/2 cup orange juice
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 tablespoon chopped parsley, optional

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Source: adapted from Many Hands

Prep time: 20 minutes;  Cook time: 40 minutes;  Serves 4

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How To Make Beet and Carrot Dip

This Beet and Carrot Dip has the most amazing colour. This is one of my favourite dip among all the dips as this dip is sweet. The natural sweetness comes from the beets and the carrots.

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Source: unknown

Prep time: 30 minutes; Yield: 2 cups (500ml)

Ingredients

  • 1 large beet, washed
  • 2 medium carrots
  • 1/2 cup (125ml) sour cream
  • 1/2 cup (125ml) crumbled feta
  • 1 green onion, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon (15ml) finely chopped fresh dill
  • 1 teaspoon (5ml) orange zest
  • 1 teaspoon (5ml) orange juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon (2ml) salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon (1ml) freshly ground black pepper

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Whipped Carrots and Parsnips

Minoo likes to introduce new usage of vegetables which are not commonly used. Parsnip is a winter vegetable which is quite foreign to the Chinese community. I have been trying to find out the Chinese name for parsnip but without success. I even asked a grocer cashier who speaks Mandarin but she does not even know what is it called in Chinese. Anyone out there can help me?

The theme of this cooking session is toward using winter vegetables.

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This Whipped Carrots and Parsnips has a very unique flavour, from the parsnips. It makes an easier introduction to parsnips and it has a strong flavour to it. The carrots kind of mellow down the parsnip’s flavour but it’s still prominent.

Prep time: 15 minutes; Cook time: 25 minutes; Serves 6.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 pounds carrots, coarsely chopped
  • 2 pounds parsnips, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
  • 1/2 cup butter, diced and softened (or olive oil)
  • 1 pinch ground nutmeg
  • salt and pepper to taste

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Old Fashioned Beef Stew Recipe for Slow Cooker

For those of you of follow chowtimes, I’m sure you’ll know me well enough that I try not to use the oven in summer.  It’s hot enough already and we do not need the extra heat from the oven.  I made this Old Fashioned Beef Stew using the slow cooker.

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I find that this beef stew is slightly on the tangy side.  We are not so fond of tangy meat but I’m ok with tangy dessert.  The next time I’m going to make this again, I will omit the lemon juice.  This is a very hearty meal.

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The main reason I made this beef stew is I found a great deal for eye of round roast at Save-On-Foods.  This 2.6kg piece of meat only cost $11.42.

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 2 pounds lean stew beef
  • 1 onion, quartered
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 2 cups beef broth or bouillon
  • 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice (I think I will omit this next time)
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon paprika
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 6 carrots, cut in pieces
  • 6 medium potatoes, cut into pieces
  • 1/3 cup cold water blended with 3 tablespoons flour for thickening (I find it not necessary)

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Carrot, Orange and Poppy Seed Bake

Frank, Paul and June teamed up to make a side dish called Carrot, Orange and Poppy Seed Bake in the South Arm Cooking Club for seniors. This recipe requires lots of cutting. While Joan and Joyce teamed up to make the Cranberry Fruit Compote, Joyce decided to help this team to do some cutting as her recipe is fairly simple and Joan can watch over it by herself.

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The poppy seeds add texture and flavour to this recipe and counteract the slightly sweet flavour of the carrots.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 pounds carrots, peel and cut into thin strips
  • 1 leek, sliced
  • 1 1/4 cups fresh orange juice
  • a handful of raisins, optional
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 1 garlic clove, crushed
  • 2 teaspoons cumin
  • 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • orange rind to garnish

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Variation:

  • You may substitute cumin with 1 teaspoon pumpkin spice and 2 teaspoons chopped thyme.
  • You may substitute orange juice with lemon or lime juice and garnish with the respective fruit rind.

Click on Read More for the instructions.

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Oat Bran Carrot Muffin

Caring Place Community Kitchen kicked start the first meeting for the fall season of 2008. Minoo made a healthy muffin in the Caring Place Community Kitchen.

Minoo prepared a list of pictured references of common kitchen utensils, unit of measurements for kitchen use, some common ingredients and a how to list for the Caring Place Community Kitchen participants. In this particular kitchen, there are more new comers from mainland China and Taiwan who are not familiar with the terminology used in cooking. This pictured references will help them to identify the ingredients better and familiarize with kitchen terminology. Minoo puts a lot of effort in improving the community kitchens and she’s a good leader.

Minoo also briefly covered the objective of the community kitchens which are:

  • introduce healthy and economical recipes
  • promote sharing in terms of work load, cost of food and culture
  • promote team work

Minoo told us that the community kitchens are funded by the Coastal Health Canada and United Way through the Family Services of Canada.

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The Oat Bran Carrot Muffin is great as an after school snack and also great for lunch box. It’s a great way to get fussy kids to eat their vegetables.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups oat bran
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 egg
  • 1 1/4 cups milk (skim or soured)
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • a teaspoon of vanilla extract
  • 1 cup grated carrots
  • 1 tablespoon ground flax seed (optional)
  • 1 handful of raisin (optional)

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Click on the link below for the instructions.

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Dilled Beans Pickles

I was invited by Arzeena to attend another workshop at the Garrat Wellness Center again. This time, it’s Savouring Spring longer workshop. The workshop is conducted by Karen Dar Woon who cooks for the community meal at Gilmore Park Church. Karen demonstrated to us how to do home canning using the heat processing method and make a no-cook freezer jam.

The first demonstration is making Dilled Beans Pickles using the heat processing method. The green beans and carrots are steeped in a zesty dill brine. These pickles can be used in salad, relish trays or as garnishes. You can mix the brine with a bit of salad oil to make a flavorful vinaigrette dressing.

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These pickles can be kept for 1 year if you follow the proper home canning method. The heat processing canning method kills the enzymes in food which cause the food to rot or spoil. Since we are preserving the food in a high acidity environment in our case, harmful bacteria will not survive in it. To learn more about home caning, you may visit this page.

Ingredients

  • 2.2 lbs (1kg) green beans
  • 2.2 lbs carrots
  • 3 small red or green peppers
  • 3 cups (750ml) white vinegar
  • 3 cups water
  • 3 tablespoons (45ml) pickling or Kosher salt
  • 18 peppercorns
  • 3 teaspoons (15ml) dill seed or 6 sprigs fresh dill
  • 6 cloves garlic

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Click on the link below for the instructions.

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Light Carrot Cake

This version of Light Carrot Cake is taken from Cook’s Illustrated, November 2006. Carrot cake is often thought of as a healthy alternative to other cakes but names can be deceiving. The problem is although carrot cake sounds healthy for its use of vegetable oil in place of butter and use of carrots as a natural sweetener, most versions of carrot cake tip the scales at 500 calories and 31 grams of fat per slice.

This Light Carrot Cake has the natural sweetness of the carrots and has reduced amount of oil and egg. In order to keep the cake light, the eggs, sugar and oil mixtures is whipped to incorporate air in it. This keeps the cake from being too dense.

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This Light Carrot Cake is moist and rich without being soggy and greasy from an overabundance of fat.

Ingredients

  • vegetable cooking spray
  • 2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1/2 teaspoon table salt
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 pound carrots (about 6 medium), peeled and grated (about 3 cups)

Click on the link below for the instructions.

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Classic Carrot Cake

Karen demonstrated two carrot cake recipes upon Rowena’s request If I remembered correctly. The first cake is a Classisc Carrot Cake which was popularized in the 70s. It is an era where people started to reduce the intake of meat and encourage intake of vegetables, grains and fruits. A book called “Diet for a small planet” from the 70s introduced combinations of plant proteins to make a complete protein diet.

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The Classic Carrot Cake is a very rich carrot cake with lots of ingredients like crushed pineapple, flaked coconut and walnuts.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon allspice
  • 4 eggs
  • 2 cups white sugar
  • 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 1/4 cups vegetable oil (can be reduced to 1 cup)
  • 2 cups grated carrots
  • 1 (20 ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained
  • 1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut
  • 1 cup chopped nuts or pumpkin seeds
  • 1 cup raisins

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Click on the link below for the instructions.

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Carrot Cake

Karen harvested some carrots from the farm the day before the community meal and she decided to make Carrot Cake for dessert for the Gilmore Park Church community meal the next day. Sometimes, it’s only the day before the meal that Karen will know what she’ll be preparing for the community meal as it all depend on what she’s getting from the donors.

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The Carrot Cake is fragrant with spices and the cream cheese frosting adds creaminess and sweetness to it.

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As we were washing and peeling the carrots, we found two unique ones which is worth to do a show and tell. These two are like two pairs of dancers legs.

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup flour
  • 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 3 eggs
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
  • 2 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2 cups grated carrots

The above ingredients will yield 20 servings of carrot cake from a 13 x 9″ pan. When we made this for the community meal, we used the ingredients for 40 servings and made it 3 times. The ingredients to make 40 servings is simply double the above ingredients except for the salt which is increase to 3/4 teaspoon only.

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Click on the link below for the instructions.

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